A MAN believes he’s been discriminated against by his Homeowners Association, which fined him after he put up some religious decorations.
Ahsan Ali Khan was surprised to return from vacation in 2021 and find an HOA notice and fine on his doorstep.
2
2
The Khans live in a neighborhood in Utah and celebrated Ramadan.
For the occasion, they put up a sign that read “Happy Ramadan” and some lights around the home, reports NBC affiliate KSLTV.
“We tend to have some decorations around the house so we can express that we’re celebrating Ramadan and create an ambiance of Ramadan, especially for the kids,” he said.
The Khans went on vacation and upon their return found two HOA notices.
One was a notice that gave them a warning for the decorations, claiming that they weren’t approved by the community.
The other was delivered a couple of days later, and was a $25 fine for not having taken down the decorations.
Khan believes he was targeted due to his religious beliefs and refuses to pay the fine.
“I personally do believe this is discrimination,” he said.
“They are the ones who insisted that they collect the fine and I as an American will not pay a fine for celebrating my freedom of religion.”
Khan claims he’s never had an issue with the HOA around Christmas time, when he decorates his home accordingly.
“My Christmas decorations are way more extravagant than the Ramadan decorations because the whole house is lit up,” he said.
He shares that he’s received incredible support from his neighbors, who’ve stood by him and put the HOA at fault.
Khan’s community is managed by a company called CCMC, which apologized after the incident gained media attention.
“It must be made very clear, we offer our sincere apology for the avoidable situation involving the Khan family and their celebration of Ramadan,” they said in a statement.
“Their home decorations for Ramadan should not have come into question.”
“We have always taken seriously the need for ongoing awareness which is why we are working with experts to provide in-depth training to our staff.”
“Situations such as these make clear the need for us to enhance this effort to ensure every community is being managed accordingly.”
CCMC has been reached out for comment.
Credit Gist New Today News in Newspaper Nigeria Headlines